Moody’s Ratings has downgraded the nation’s credit rating one notch from Aaa to Aa1, leaving the U.S. government without a top grade among any of the major rating agencies.
Moody's cited rising debt and interest payment ratios that are “significantly higher than similarly rated sovereigns.”
“Successive U.S. administrations and Congress have failed to agree on measures to reverse the trend of large annual fiscal deficits and growing interest costs,” Moody’s said in a Friday news release. “The U.S.'s fiscal performance is likely to deteriorate relative to its own past and compared to other highly-rated sovereigns.”
For U.S. consumers, lower ratings could lead to higher borrowing costs.
The switch comes after Fitch Ratings downgraded the nation to AA+ from AAA in 2023. Standard & Poor’s downgraded the nation’s credit rating in 2011.
